Borrego Springs Film Festival Press Release, Novemebr 29th, 2022

Borrego Springs Film Festival

Announces Line-up of Community & Filmmaker Panels for January 2023

For Immediate Release

The Tenth Annual Borrego Springs Film Festival will take place on January 12 – 16, 2023. The five-day festival presents screenings of selected short films, features, documentaries, animated shorts, and Hispanic/Latin films, shown in Blocks at the Borrego Springs Performing Arts Center. Festival passes and tickets for individual screening Blocks can be purchased at borregospringsfilmfestival.org, and a full schedule of the Screening Blocks can be found there.

In addition to the screenings, the Tenth BSFF is featuring an exciting line-up of Community and Filmmaker Panels, all of which are free and open to the public.

Beginning the night before the Film Festival officially commences, on Wednesday, January 11th at 8:00 pm, BSFF committee chairman, Fred Jee will host Community Panel: “Borrego Film History”: an exploration of filmmaking history in the local Anza-Borrego desert, discussing various films made over the decades in the area, with some background information on those productions. The panel will conclude with a screening of the 1953 movie, The Desert Rats, a black-and-white war film from 20th Century Fox, starring Richard Burton and James Mason, which tells the story of the Siege of Tobruk in North Africa during World War II. The film features desert battle sequences that were shot near Borrego Springs, with the local terrain “standing-in” for North Africa.

This first panel and screening will take place at the Borrego Springs Performing Arts Center. All other panels will be held the Borrego Springs Library. All panels are free and open to the public.

The next panel, Friday, January 13th, 12:00 – 2:00 pm, is entitled, Community Panel: “The Storytellers and The Psychologist.” The Panel will be hosted by BSFF filmmakers, Reuben Aaronson and Steve Lerner, who will screen the original 16mm prints of their very first films made 50 years ago, which address themes of authenticity, belonging, and self-respect. A discussion with audience participation will follow the films, in which the filmmakers will be joined by guest panelist, Harriet Lerner, a psychologist and author who has been praised as one of our nation’s most respected voices in the psychology of women.

Later that day the panels continue, Friday, January 13th, 3:00 – 5:00 pm, with Community Panel: “Defending the Dark.” This panel brings together a prominent astronomer and 2023 BSFF filmmakers to discuss various “dark sky” issues like the Borrego Springs designation as an International Dark Sky Community, how light pollution affects our world in general, and how the far-reaching impact of astronomy on our culture has been reflected in the medium of film. Astronomer, Douglas Arion, PhD will offer a short multi-media presentation, which will be followed by a free screening of panelist Tara Zabriskie’s documentary, “Defending the Dark.” This panel will also feature screenwriter, Matthew Carlson, who’s historical drama “The Wild Abyss,” concerning true events at the Mt. Wilson Observatory, will screen at the Film Festival in BLOCK C which starts at 1:00 pm, immediately before this panel. Those interested in attending this panel are encouraged to see the film beforehand during BLOCK C.

Beginning on Saturday, January 14th, 11:30 am – 1:30 pm, is Film Distribution Panel: “The Devil and the Deep Blue Sea.” Host, Kelly Sallaway is an award-winning producer who specializes in unscripted content and has produced documentary, reality and docu-series segments, episodic and feature projects. She will offer her successful seller’s perspective on the market, its expectations, and how the process of distribution generally works in today’s streaming market.

Next up on Saturday, January 14th, 2:30 pm – 4:00 pm, is Filmmaker’s Round Table: “Hold ‘em and Fold ‘em.” No, it’s not an analysis of the Kenny Roger’s classic song, “The Gambler,” but rather, an open discussion with BSFF filmmakers and moderators on the craft of low-budget filmmaking. Most filmmakers have a secret weapon, an “ace card” they can pull out when it’s needed most. We’ll discuss ideas like these that filmmakers might use to make a film, or to “save” a film when something goes wrong.

Finally on Sunday, January 15th, 12:30 – 2:30pm, Filmmaker’s Workshop: “Your Composer’s Composure.” This panel features freelance film composer, Stephen Bennett. He will showcase the process of successfully writing and producing a virtual orchestral score for a micro-budget short film. He’ll cover all parts of the process, from compositing temporary music in the edit, to the music “spotting” process, rough piano sketches, virtual orchestral production, and finally the fully arranged and produced mix heard in the final cut. The discussion will be followed by a free screening of the award-winning BSFF film, “A Gift for All Ages”, which prominently features Bennett’s lush film score.